and all those millions that are being donated? Shelters in Louisiana, everywhere, are in dire need of help. I’ll pass on this panicked email, and…info on an equipment pickup in Austin tomorrow for New Orleans. Know it’s late…
PLEASE VOLUNTEER- we need your help
Message: Please Volunteer to help in any way you can. I’m sure shelters
everywhere are experiencing the same difficulties that we are at the shelter
I’ve helped to set up here in Donaldsonville– We’ve got all the bedding and
clothes we need for the next week or two- WE NEED VOLUNTEERS- to organize
supplies and distribute them, to hold babies, to carry boxes, to serve food, to
prepare food, to find restaurants to donate meals, to clean and bandage cuts
that people got wading through polluted water, to play with the kids, to listen
to people, to help them find information on their missing relatives and mourn or
rejoice with them when they learn, to help people get where they need to go
elsewhere in the country.
PLEASE HELP. I’ve spent the last days working from 6pm to well past sunrise
doing ALL of the above myself and TONS MORE. I could not allow myself to leave
until 10 am this morning because I had no one to leave in charge of the supply
closet- the life’s blood of the shelter– until then, and even then I had to
wrestle her away from a different task and train her, through my fogged up
contact lenses and hoarse voice, to do a rather complicated job. As I headed for
the car with my cardboard box of supplies I’d put together for myself- I brought
very little with me when I left New Orleans- I was still trying to find a doctor
for a woman who was having a bad asthma attack, and shoes for barefoot people. I
barely managed to hold my tears till I got to the car because I’d finally
reached my breaking point. I’d had 6 hours of sleep in 4 days. I broke down and
sobbed. PLEASE PLEASE VOLUNTEER. I just got 3 hours and I’ll try to get some
more after I right this, before I go in again to pass the night doing everything
I can.
THE TIME IS OVER FOR GOOD INTENTIONS. WE NEED YOU. PLEASE VOLUNTEER. PLEASE!
I can’t keep doing 16 hours of hard work every night and there is no end in
sight. I personally need your help. I need to have hope that more people are
going to step up and commit themselves to helping directly. — and it is so
satisfying. If you are sitting in front of the t.v. feeling powerless to do
anything– VOLUNTEER. You can see results immediately and make the world a better
place person by person. Even if you think you have nothing to give- GET
INVOLVED.
Please forward this to anyone and everyone. I have found that refugees
themselves make the best volunteers.
Anne Ewen
New Orleans Resident currently in Donaldsonville Louisiana at “The Dream
Center” shelter.
please contact the dream center in los angeles at
www.dreamcenter.org
or in louisiana call (it’s mostly busy- but keep trying) 225-474-6688
…and…
Attention Austin!
Get Your Act On will be pulling into Austin by 2pm tomorrow (Saturday, September
3) to collect supplies and donations to bring to New Orleans. A wonderful lady
by the name of Mary Ann has offered us her space to use as a drop-off and
meeting location. The address is:
1633 Waterston Avenue
Austin, TX
(in the Clarksville area downtown)
We will be staying over in Austin that night, so feel free to come by any time
after 2pm to drop off supplies, monetary donations, or just to chat. Media is
most welcome!
Here is a list of supplies that would be helpful to the people in New Orleans –
I’m sure there are plenty of things we have not thought of, so don’t feel
obliged to stick to what is on the list!
SUPPLY LIST:
Generators
Chain Saws (gas powered)
All kinds of tools (hammers, saws, screwdrivers… you get the idea)
Tarps
Tents
Canopies
Propane Cookstoves
Propane
Solar Showers
Heavy Duty Trash Bags
Lanterns
Flash Lights
Bleach
Water Filtration Devices (non-electric)
Water Purification Tablets
Medical Supplies – bandages, medicines, any and all first aid items, over the
counter medications
Vitamins
Toiletries (shampoo, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes)
Clothing
Shoes
Infant Formula
Diapers
Toilet Paper
Paper Towels
Chemical Toilets
Towels
Sheets and other Linens
Sleeping Bags
Toys for kids
Pet food
Non Perishable Food Items
Water
Nails, Screws….
Plastic Sheeting
Duct Tape
Rope
Folding Tables
Water Jugs
Gas Jugs
Axes
Coolers
Storage Bins
Stanley Wonder Bar Pry Bar 55-525
(http://www.epinions.com/Stanley_Wonder_Bar_Pry_Bar_55_525_Shop_Tools)
Ames Post Hole Digging/Tamper Bar
(http://www.epinions.com/hmgd-Lawn_and_Garden-Hand_Tools-All-Ames_Post_Hole_Digging_Tamper_Bar)
Sawzall
Basically, think of what you would need to survive in a hot, humid city full of
toxic waste and disease with no electricity or running water. Please feel free
to email me with more suggestions and I will add them to the list.
Also, we are looking for a trailer to attach to the van that can be donated or
purchased – it MUST be an enclosed trailer for safety reasons.
We have a couple of requests for equipment that would be helpful for us as far
as keeping in touch and coordinating efforts, but we do not want to spend
donation money on these items – but if anyone happens to have these things
‘lying around’ and is willing to donate them, we could use: A laptop (preferably
a Mac – I have my eMac with me, but it is going to be almost impossible to use
it once we get to New Orleans and while we are on the road). A Blackberry might
even be more handy, though I am not sure what the service costs, but this or
some kind of satellite connection may be the only way we would be able to
reliably communicate from New Orleans as cell phones do not work there right now
and there are very few phone lines. We have a couple of walkie talkies, but
could use more. However, first priority are the relief supplies!
Please spread the word to all your friends in and around Austin and remind all
reporters and media that they are most welcome!
We look forward to seeing you tomorrow –
Peace and love,
Andrea
